May 2007 - SIMA

Figure 5
FASTMET Plant at Nippon Steel
Hirohata Works (1 of 2)
Expected operating parameters for FASTMET and
FASTMELT Plants in India are given in Table II.
Table II
FASTMET/FASTMELT Plants
Operating Consumptions for Indian Conditions
Basis: Production rate of 500,000 tpy
Quantity per t of product
FASTMET FASTMELT
Input Units DRI hot metal3
Iron Ore1 t 1.4 1.4
Coal2 t 0.4 0.4
Lime (binder) kg 60 60
Flux t - 0.04
Burner fuel net Gcal 0.7 0.7
Electricity kWh 100 575
Labor man-hour 0.2 0.35
Maintenance USD 5.00 10.00
1. Assumes DR-grade iron oxide; consumption of
wastes with lower iron content would be
proportionally higher
2. May be lower if wastes are used that contain
carbon
3. Quantities for FASTMELT include RHF and EIF
The advantages of FASTMET and FASTMELT
include:
Uses well-proven RHF Technology
Ability to use domestic iron ore fines and ironbearing
wastes
Uses fine, non-coking coals; carbon–containing
wastes reduce coal required
Larger capacities than rotary kilns: up to
500,000 tpy in a single module
FASTMET DRI can be melted in an EAF or BOF
FASTMELT produces a high quality hot metal
Midrex and Kobe Steel are now discussing FASTMET
and FASTMELT plants with a number of prospective
clients around the world. Potential applications are
regional treatment facilities, which would receive
wastes from local steel mills, and use at a mine site
to treat stockpiled mine tailings.
Conclusion
Indian steel production will need to continue to grow
to supply the country’s rapidly expanding economy,
utilising the country’s indigenous wealth of iron ore
and coal. The blast furnace/BOF steelmaking route
will continue to play a role, but it has limitations, such
as the need to import expensive coking coal, the
higher capital cost, and environmental issues. Direct
reduction will continue to grow, but there are
limitations with respect to the current approaches.
Rotary kilns are small-scale and produce a lower
quality DRI. The availability of natural gas to feed
the larger capacity shaft furnace DR plants, is limited.
Two new approaches that can make use of Indian
resources are Gasification/MIDREX and the rotary
hearth technologies FASTMET and FASTMELT. Coal
gasification using the S-L FBDB Gasification Process
and the MIDREX Shaft Furnace are individually wellproven
worldwide and if combined, can provide an
economical way to make high quality steels using
Indian iron ores and coals. FASTMET on the other
hand, provides the opportunity to recycle ironbearing
wastes and solve an environmental problem.
FASTMELT can utilize Indian iron ore fines to
produce a blast furnace-grade hot metal.
MAY-2007/6